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Phil Gick named Sagamore of the Wabash
Phil Gick is not a man of few words.
Mention the nature of government finances in Putnam County, the good work being done by the Putnam County Community Foundation or historic preservation efforts in Putnam County and beyond, and Gick could likely hold forth for hours.
Gick is passionate about his community and has plenty of ideas to share.
Just don’t ask Phil Gick to talk about Phil Gick.
So it was that upon being honored as a Sagamore of the Wabash, the highest honor bestowed by the governor of Indiana, Gick was Cleary moved, yet only managed a few words, deflecting the attention away from himself, of course.
“I would just say that all of you know that this kind of recognition is really the results a lot of efforts from a lot of people. Thanks,” Gick said.
The occasion was the annual presidents dinner of the Putnam County Community Foundation, an event that not only gathers the past board presidents of the Community Foundation (Gick among them) but also PCCF staff and board members.
This was certainly a crowd that understands “efforts of a lot of people.”
Still, Gick’s efforts in various areas should not be sold short, so it was fitting that the president pro tempore of the Indiana State Senate showed up to say nice things about Gick.
State Sen. Rod Bray was a surprise guest during the Tuesday dinner at M2, arriving just in time to present the award on behalf of Gov. Eric Holcomb.
“I got to know Phil probably in 2012 when I first ran for office,” said Bray, who represents the southern portion of Putnam County as well as parts of Owen, Morgan and Johnson counties. “At that time, he was already on the county council and showed up at a lot of similar meetings, so I got the chance to sit and get to know him. We became friends relatively quickly, at least in my mind.
“I got to know quite a bit about him and things that he was involved with,” Bray added, “but until I got to looking into it recently, I didn’t really know to what level of engagement he was involved in so many different chapters of our society. Obviously the county council has played really large role. The military, I knew, but not really the depth of his military experience and training and contributions. I was pretty impressed when I got to looking into that pretty deeply.”
Prior to his time on the Putnam County Council — Gick will complete his 16th and final year on the council in December — the Greencastle native spent 30 years in the U.S. Army.
While in the Army, Gick led and directed organizations from small teams to units with thousands of personnel. His awards included two Defense Superior Service Medals, the Legion of Merit and the Bronze Star Medal.
Gick returned to Greencastle in 2006, and he was elected to the Putnam County Council two years later.
As councilman, Gick has managed to balance a commitment to fiscal responsibility with a willingness to do the sort of spending that will make Putnam County a better place to live and work.
His two years as PCCF president in 2019 and 2020 included the unenviable task of helping to shepherd to organization through those first uncertain months of the COVID-19 pandemic.
It is probably in the area of historic preservation that Gick has shone brightest. Upon their return to the community, he and late wife George purchased the Hazelett House (Sunny Hill) on East Washington Street across from Greencastle High School and set about restoring it.
“I own an old house and fixed it up, but not as nice as Phil fixed his up — I just recently got a tour of that,” Bray said. “We commiserated about some of those challenges.”
Gick has spent a number of years as president or board member of the Heritage Preservation Society of Putnam County and seems to be at the center of almost every effort to get local landmarks recognized at the state and national level.
“When I looked into everything, I was impressed and always have been impressed with Phil Gick,” Bray said. “It turns out that other people are impressed as well.
“When I pitched the contributions Phil Gick has made (to Gov. Holcomb), this was a really, really easy sell,” Bray said.
The senator went on to explain that Gov. Ralph Gates created the Sagamore of the Wabash in 1944 as a way to pay tribute to Hoosiers for their contributions to their communities and state.
“The word sagamore is a Native American term that’s used to mean someone of great wisdom, even up to the level of lesser chief,” Bray said. “Someone the community goes to for advice, for counsel, for help.
“We have one of those gentlemen in this room with us tonight,” he added. “That gentleman, Phil Gick, is you. Would you come up here?”
While not necessarily comfortable up front receiving the award, Gick was at ease while enjoying the evening with wife Susan as well as son Geoff and daughter-in-law Alexis, as well as laughing and talking with old friends.